by Avery Gale
Colt watched Jenna’s eyes go wide then watched as emotion swamped her again, but these were cries of relief, so he slowly got to his feet and made his way back up the stairs. He wrapped them both in the blanket he’d discarded earlier and made his way down the hallway. They were both going to warm up with a nice warm shower, and then after he was sure Jenna was safely tucked in and sleeping in his bed, he had a phone call to make.
Chapter 11
Standing under the warm water, Jenna looked around and marveled at the way they’d used the natural rock walls whenever possible throughout the cabin, even in the shower. Multiple showerheads that looked like waterfalls and garden sprays massaged her tired muscles from every direction. The whole backside of the shower had a built-in bench, and the glass front gave a clear view of the rest of the enormous bathroom, which also held a hot tub big enough for five large people. The whole room had the feel of tropical paradise hidden away in some canyon in Central America, complete with beautiful palms and hanging baskets of trailing vines. Considering where Colt, Mitch, and Bryant had likely spent time, that might not have been too far off base.
Jenna was just reaching for the shampoo when Colt finished stripping out of his wet T-shirt and jeans and joined her. “Here, let me,” he said, taking the shampoo from her hands. “Another important element in successful Dominant/submissive relationships is that the Dom is not just obligated to care for his submissive partner, but he is honored and privileged to do so. And I want to be clear on this point, Jenna, because I know that you have are a bright, savvy businesswoman, and it’s important that you know being submissive does not take anything away from that part of you. As a matter of fact, you will likely find that learning to let go of control in one facet of your life will likely make you more effective in other areas of your life.” At her confused expression he continued. “I know it doesn’t make sense to you now. But if you will truly submit, honestly let go, during these next few days you’ll come to understand what I’m telling you.” And then, chuckling, he added, “I don’t for a minute think you are going to easily let go, your mind is going to fight it all the way, because you have had to maintain control in so many ways for so very long. But, my beautiful pet, if you will just try it, you’ll find a freedom you have never imagined possible. There will be a real feeling of liberation when you don’t have to make decisions, you don’t have to monitor how you should or shouldn’t react to something, all you have to do is let go and trust…knowing your Master will take care of you and provide for your every need.”
Jenna was listening, but if she was honest, she wasn’t really absorbing the words. She was drained, both physically and emotionally. She felt as if someone had just leached every bit of energy right out of her. She was hearing Colt’s words as if they were being spoken from a great distance and didn’t really pertain to her. His hands working the shampoo through the long strands of her hair and massaging her scalp felt so incredibly good, she was having trouble focusing on anything but how wonderful his touch felt. She suddenly realized he’d stopped talking and was just watching her. She was sure her dazed expression had given away the fact she hadn’t exactly been completely cognizant of everything he’d said, and when he smiled and just pulled her into his arms, she went willingly.
* * * *
Colt knew he was giving Jenna information she wasn’t going to be able to fully grasp, but he hadn’t realized just how “not with him” she was until he’d stepped in front of her and seen that she was practically catatonic. God, if he could just get her to let go like that during a scene, she would be floating in the upper atmosphere of subspace in no time at all. He quickly finished washing them both and then gently dried her. He helped her get a comb through her long, silky black hair and then left her in the bathroom for a couple of minutes of private time while he pulled the sheets back on the bed. When she opened the door he moved to take her hand and lead her to the bed, settling her in before lying down beside her. She completely blindsided him when she pulled him close and whispered, “Please make love to me and chase away the awful memories? I haven’t been with a man since that night.”
It took Colt a few seconds to get his emotions under control enough to respond. “Are you sure, princess? You’ve had a very difficult evening, and I want you to be very sure this is what you want. Believe me, there is nothing I’d like more that to sink inside your soft body, but I don’t want this to be about hiding. You are too precious to me for me to take a risk you’ll regret this decision in the morning.”
Jenna’s eyes were tear filled, but he was certain they weren’t tears of sadness, but of a genuine need to finally find a connection with someone who wouldn’t just be fucking her, but someone who would be loving her. It was as basic as the difference between having something taken from you as opposed to giving it freely. “I need you, I need you to show me how it can be, how it should have been the first time. Please help me sweep those dark shadows out of my mind.” Colt was sure that Jenna was scared she would appear needy and weak, and he knew neither of those traits had ever been who she really was. But he was also sure that her need to feel the warmth of a man holding her and the connection that would bring was genuine.
“I’d like nothing more than to show you how beautiful I can make you feel, my pet. You know it won’t always be like this, I won’t always make love to you. There will be times that I will just fuck you. There will be times when it is all about what I want and my pleasure will be the only thing I seek, but tonight, oh my precious Jenna, tonight I plan to love you. I’m not just going to make love to you, sweetheart, I am going to love you. I want you to remember this moment for the rest of our lives.” All the time he’d been talking, he’d been running his fingers from her clit back through her wet folds, making sure she was wet enough to ease his way into her tight sheath. As he rose over her, he pushed her legs wide apart, and leaning on one forearm, he parted the soft, swollen petals of her pussy and guided the tip of his cock into her opening. As he started to enter her, she gasped, and he saw her eyes start to glaze with lust. He pushed through so slowly he thought he was going to lose his mind, but he didn’t want to hurt her. This was about her pleasure, about making sure she understood that he would always take care of her. Mine! Finally he was fully seated inside her. “Oh my fucking God, Jenna, you feel like heaven. You are already tightening around my cock in rhythmic pulses that are threatening my control. Please, love, I’m begging you, hold still, or this is going to be over long before either of us wants it to end.”
Jenna knew by the rough sound of Colt’s voice he was struggling to not just let go and pound into her. She could see the tiny beads of sweat popping out on his forehead, showing how much effort he was really expending trying to take this slow. She tried to relax her vaginal muscles, but he felt so amazing inside her, she wanted him to move! As he had slowly slid inside her, she swore she’d felt every vein, bump, and ridge of his cock. And he was so large, when she’d first seen him in the shower, she’d been sure he would never fit inside her. She was clutching his shoulders and heard herself moan his name.
When Colt heard her breathe out his name, he couldn’t hold back any longer. “Hold on to me, princess, and just let me love you.” And he started long strokes in and out of her tight passage, making sure her hips were tilted just right so he hit her G-spot each time he entered her, and then the coarse hairs at the base of his penis tickled her clit at the same time. She was quickly spiraling toward her release, and Colt was grateful because he knew he wouldn’t be able to last long, she felt so un-fucking-believable. He whispered sweet words into her ear, telling her how perfect she felt, how tightly she was squeezing his cock, and what a wondrous gift she was giving him by trusting him to replace the memories for her. And when he finally said, “Come for me, Jenna,” just before sealing his lips to hers in a mind-stealing kiss, he felt her explode in his arms. The strength of her orgasm was staggering. The squeeze of her internal muscles was just shy of painful. He was sure he’d ne
ver experienced anything like it. She took him right over the edge in to a deep pool of pleasure. Hell, he hadn’t come during a woman’s first orgasm since he was a kid. Christ, what she did to him was incredible. He’d never had an orgasm that powerful, it had truly rocked his soul. Gasping for breath, Colt rolled to his side, taking Jenna with him. “Oh my God, woman, you just stole my soul. I have never felt anything like that, you are amazing.”
Jenna’s eyes filled with tears. “Thank you for showing me how heart-stopping it’s supposed to be. I had no idea it could feel so wonderful. You’d made me come earlier, but nothing like this. This was, oh my, I just don’t really know how to describe it. I will never forget how you replaced all the shadows with light and filled my heart with hope.” She’d been stroking the side of his face as she spoke, and Colt was speechless at her soulful words. In that moment, the decision was irrevocable, he’d never let her go. It didn’t matter what he had to do, he’d never be able to let her walk away. His life’s mission was now to win the heart and soul of this woman.
Colt kissed her and then tucked her against his chest and stroked her back softly until he felt her relax and heard her breathing even out and knew she had finally fallen asleep. Slowly he eased away from her and quickly returned with a warm cloth and cleaned his seed from between her legs. She grumbled a protest, but he easily shushed her back to sleep. As much as he loved seeing his cum marking her in the most primal way, he knew she’d rest much better now. Tucking the blankets around her to ward off a chill from the air-conditioning, Colt settled a last kiss on her soft lips before dimming the lights and slipping on a pair of gym shorts and making his way into his office.
Lifting the handset of the comm device that would connect him directly to Grayson, he waited until the other man answered and asked, “Did you get it?”
“Yeah, but—”
Colt stopped him, saying, “If you can’t scrub it enough that her brothers won’t be tortured forever, delete it all. I’ll deal with the fallout. Get a call in to General Franklin. I’m going to hold his feet to the fire over this. I’ll never forgive the bastard for not telling us about Scott’s history before he joined our team. Jenna has paid a huge price for his negligence. I’ll not let that go, ever.”
“I totally understand and agree. I’ll try to clean the tape, but honestly, I don’t think it’s possible. The whole thing gutted me, and I wasn’t even there. You okay, man?” Grayson’s ability to absorb and identify the feelings of those around him was just one of the man’s amazing gifts. Colt knew his friend was a full-blown psychic, but few others did. Most of their team knew he had an amazing sixth sense, but Colt and Bryant Davis were the only ones who knew the full extent of Mitch Grayson’s gifts.
“I won’t even try to lie to you.” Chuckling, he added, “Wouldn’t fucking work anyway. I’ll be okay, I’m shaken. Seeing the woman I love in that kind of pain is the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do. But she’s going to be okay. I’m not stupid enough to think this is over, this is just the first layer of blocks she’s built around her heart, but I knew I had to blow up this wall in order to reach the rest.”
When Colt had begun to suspect Scott’s involvement, he’d enlisted Grayson’s help setting up equipment so they could record his conversations with Jenna, hoping to get something they would be able to let Alex and Zach hear, because her brothers were both worried sick thinking about how they might have endangered their sister and what damage had been done to her. But what had transpired was not a conversation he wanted his friends to have to hear. The guilt of not only the sexual assault, but the added burden of her years of suffering in silence to protect them as well would be too much for them to handle, and he knew it would break them in ways they would struggle forever to overcome. Sometimes you had to protect your friends from themselves, and this was shaping up to be one of those situations.
Chapter 12
Kat was sitting in Alex and Zach’s spacious office answering Sheriff Dylan Marshall’s questions. She watched his expression go from interest to disbelief in a heartbeat. Kat knew that Alex and Zach had sent men to try to track down the woman who had helped her escape Cal Robertson the night he’d almost killed her in a BDSM dungeon club in Las Vegas several months earlier. She also knew they hadn’t had any luck locating the woman who had no doubt saved Kat’s life. Being the honorable men they were, the Lamont twins hadn’t yet given up. Mia had risked her own safety to help their woman, and Kat was sure they’d leave no stone unturned to locate her. Finally, Alex broke the silence that had filled the room after he’d described Mia. “Katarina, it’s important that you give Dylan every detail you can remember. Can you be more specific than she made you ‘think of an Inca princess’?” Aha, so that was the comment that had Dylan sitting up in his seat like his spine had suddenly become a steel rod.
“Okay, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be vague, but it’s kind of hard to put into words. She was kind of regal acting, like she didn’t really fit in there, you know? She was poised, and her eyes were bright with intelligence and insight. I’d seen her at different clubs Cal had taken me to. She always seemed to be around now that I think about it. But I never saw her scene with anyone, and even though she was dressed in Club wear, it was never anything over-the-top.” Scooting back so she was leaning against the back of the soft leather, she relaxed and leaned her head back as she continued sifting through her tortured memories. Zach had moved closer to slowly lift her feet up onto the low table in front of the sofa, and she smiled her thanks. She’d paused to look into the eyes of each of the three men watching her before continuing. “She was always friendly to me, acted kind of like a sympathetic, older, and wiser sister who gave me the impression she thought I was being naïve to be hanging out with Cal and his minions.” Turns out she was oh so right!
“Kat, can you give Dylan a detailed physical description also? Dylan seems to think Mia might be someone he knows.” Zach’s words surprised Kat, and when she turned to Dylan she was sure her surprise was probably clearly visible. She had always liked and admired him, he just seemed honorable. Kat had come clear up to her feet, but Zach settled her back. “No, kitten, please sit back and let’s get these swollen feet elevated again, shall we? You’ll be able to think much better if you are comfortable.”
Looking first at Zach then quickly turning her attention to Dylan, Kat said, “Okay…But do you really think you might know her? How can that be? Oh well, sure, I’ll do anything to help you find her. I owe her my life, I’d really like to be able to thank her and make sure she’s all right.” Kat paused and lifted her eyes to Alex’s and smiled. Alex was the more alpha of the twins and was her “paper husband” as she liked to teasingly call him because she was legally married to him since he was the eldest of the twins—by two whole minutes, he laughingly reminded everyone—but Kat had been “bound” to both men in a beautiful ceremony and considered them both her husbands equally. Even though Alex was known, to everyone who knew both him and Zach, as the tougher of the two to deal with, Kat knew she and the child she carried were his one true weakness. His smile of support and love warmed her, and she continued. “Mia was taller than me, don’t give me that look, I know that covers just about everybody. I guess I should say she was a lot taller, she was probably five seven or five eight, slender, but muscular, she obviously kept in great physical condition. She had an interesting accent, too.” She stopped to ponder for a minute.
Dylan leaned forward, his formerly relaxed pose now tight. He reminded Kat of a jungle cat ready to pounce on some unsuspecting prey and asked her, “Spanish or Portuguese residual linguistics, perhaps?”
Kat was surprised to hear Dylan’s question, not only because it was surprising in its accuracy, but also the wording was spoken like a seasoned investigator rather than the small-town sheriff’s role which was the only one she’d ever seen him in. Even though they had both grown up in Climax, Dylan was almost a decade older than she was, so he’d been gone from the community by the ti
me she was leaving grammar school. She’d heard Alex and Zach make reference to his former career in the DEA, but she hadn’t known him during that time, so she often forgot that his training and expertise far exceeded his current position. “Yes, I really think Portuguese is closer than Spanish, though. Do you think this might be the woman you know? Do you think you can help us find her? I’m really worried about her, and I’d like to thank her for her kindness.” Kat was excited by the possibility that Dylan might have a way to contact Mia.
Dylan sighed and pulled an envelope out of his shirt pocket, running it between his fingers. He sighed and looked up. “Katarina, do you think you’d recognize a picture of the woman who helped you?”
The stark pain in his eyes startled her, and she wondered yet again what it was that everyone in the room but her seemed to know. “Well, sure, I think so.” Kat looked from Zach, who gave her a small, encouraging smile, to Alex, who merely nodded.
Dylan pulled a photograph from the envelope and handed it to Kat. Even though her immediate reaction was answer enough, he needed confirmation. “Is that the woman who helped you?”
Dylan knew in his heart it was his Mia, it had to be. Christ what was the woman thinking, going after Cal Robertson without backup? And what had Robertson done with her before he’d come to ShadowDance Mountain? Since the bastard was now six feet under, there was no way to even ask the asshole any questions. Fuck, what a mess!